Surrey County Council Adult Social Care precept is part of the overall charge that is set to pay for the services delivered by the County Council.

The Surrey County Council increase for 2018/19 has been set at 5.99%, of which 3% must be put towards the funding of Adult Social Care.

This table shows the 2017/18 charge, the 2018/19 increase and the amount payable for 2018/19

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

ASC element 2017/18

£41.63

£48.57

£55.50

£62.44

£76.31

£90.19

£104.06

£124.88

ASC increase 2018/19

£26.63

£31.07

£35.51

£39.95

£48.83

£57.71

£66.59

£79.90

SCC ASC Total 2018/19

£68.26

£79.64

£91.01

£102.39

£125.14

£147.90

£170.65

£204.78

Percentage increases – Further information

The Council Tax is worked out based on a Valuation Band D.

Surrey County Council

Surrey County Council have increased their overall Band D charge by 5.99%

The charge of £1331.55 for 2017/18 was increased by 5.99% which is £79.74, giving the new overall annual charge of £1411.29.

This increase of £79.74 is then split in the ratio 2.99/3 and the resulting sums applied to the two separately identified areas of Surrey County Council expenditure.

The Surrey County Council basic charge for 2017/18 was £1269.11 and rises to £1308.90 for 2018/19.

The Surrey County Council Adult Social Care charge for 2017/18 was £62.44 and rises to £102.39 for 2018/19.

As a percentage of the 2017/18 charge of £1269.11, the increase to £1308.90 is 3.14%. However the increased percentage is calculated with reference to the overall 2017/18 charge not the individual elements.

As a percentage of the 2017/18 charge of £62.44 the increase to £102.39 is 63.98%. However the increased percentage is calculated with reference to the overall 2017/18 charge not the individual account elements.

From 1 April 2016 SCC was allowed to raise a separate levy in respect of Adult Social Care and from that date it is a requirement for the amount to be identified separately on the council tax bill.

What does the Council Tax pay for?

For every pound collected, 74p will go to Surrey County Council to pay for services such as social services, schools and libraries, and 13p will go to Surrey Police Authority.

Around 12p will stay with the Borough Council to pay for services provided locally such as collecting rubbish and sweeping the streets, services for the elderly, caring for the environment, health and safety, planning, parks, open spaces and leisure centres. 1p will go to parish councils.

What are Special Expenses?

Special expenses are used as a mechanism to charge elements of the Council Tax to specific areas of the borough.

Surrey Heath Borough Council recovers an element of its Council Tax via Special Expenses. These charges are applicable in Camberley, Frimley, Frimley Green, Deepcut and Mytchett.

Special expenses are charged to ensure that non parished areas, which are Camberley, Frimley, Frimley Green, Mytchett and Deepcut, are charged a proportion of the cost of facilities such as open spaces directly which in parished areas are charged in a parish precept

In the interests of fairness and balance Surrey Heath Borough Council charges special expenses in Camberley, Frimley, Frimley Green, Deepcut and Mytchett to recover the costs of maintaining the assets it owns.

The figure quoted on individual bills for properties in the Camberley, Frimley, Frimley Green, Deepcut and Mytchett is dependant upon the overall level of “special expenses” recoverable each year.

Useful Related Links

For more information on the spending plans of Surrey County Council or Surrey Police please see their leaflet or you can contact them directly

If you think your Council Tax bill is wrong tell us as soon as possible.
Remember you must still keep your payments up to date until your appeal is decided.

When to appeal

You can appeal if you think:

we have sent the bill to the wrong person for your home

your home should be exempt from Council Tax

the amount of the bill is wrong, for example if you think you're entitled to a discount or we haven't reduced the bill for a disability

How to appeal

As a first step you should write to us giving reasons why you think your bill is wrong. When you write, include your name and address and say which decisions you don't agree with. We may ask you for more information so we can make a decision.

Some companies are contacting residents and offering to do this for a fee on their behalf.
Please note that you can contact the VOA direct and this service is free.

They will tell you how your Council Tax band has been worked out. They can review your band if you provide information that suggests it's wrong (eg evidence that similar properties in your street are in a different band).

If they agree your band is wrong, they'll put it right. Your council will then update your Council Tax bill.

Remember you must still keep your payments up to date until your appeal is decided.

Flood Defence Levy

The Environment Agency's flood defence work is funded by a levy on the local councils. Surrey is covered by the Agency's Thames Regional Flood and Coastal Committee. The levies are made on Surrey County Council. The following information is published on behalf of the Environment Agency.

Thames Region

Environment Agency Southern Region is obliged to publish the following information under the requirements of The Council Tax (Demand Notices) (England) Regulations 2011 (as amended).

The Environment Agency is a levying body for its Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Functions under the Flood and Water Management Act 2010 and the Environment Agency (Levies) (England and Wales) Regulations 2011.

The Environment Agency has powers in respect of flood defence along 5200 kilometres of main river and along tidal and sea defences, in the area of the Thames Regional Flood and Coastal Committee. Money is spent on the construction of new flood defence schemes, the maintenance of the river system and existing flood defences together with the operation of a flood warning system and management of the risk of coastal erosion.

The financial details are:

Thames Regional Flood and Coastal Committee

Type

2011/2012

2012/2013

2013/2014

2014/2015

2016/17

2017/18

Gross Expenditure

£86,484

£84,682

£74,688

£63,731

£76,358

£98,813

Levies Raised

£10,000

£10,000

£10,500

£10,500

£10,912

£11,130

Total Council Tax Base

£5,081

£5,127

£4,471

£4,556

£4,810

£4,906

The majority of funding for flood defence comes directly from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). However, under the new Partnership Funding rule not all schemes will attract full central funding. To provide "matching" funding the Agency may seek funding from County and Metropolitan Councils, Unitary Authorities and London Boroughs in the form of a Local Levy. The Local Levy is shared on the basis of Band D Equivalents between all contributing bodies within the Committee Area.

A change in the gross budgeted expenditure between years reflects the programme of works for both capital and revenue needed by the Regional Flood and Coastal Committee to which you contribute. The total Local Levy raised by this committee has increased by 1.99%

The total Local Levy raised has increased from £10,912,420 in 2016/2017 to £11,129,577 for 2017/2018.

Where the Council considers a property is complete or the work remaining to be done on a new building can reasonably be expected to be completed within 3 months, a completion notice will be served on the owner of the property as soon as it is reasonably practical.

For the purpose of completion notices the 'owner' is defined a 'the person entitled to possession'. The completion notice is a document that specifies the completion day, which is the day on which it becomes a dwelling for council tax purposes. It is then entered into the valuation list with effect from that date.

This avoids any of the uncertainties which could arise if the date of completion were fixed retrospectively, such as who was liable and for how long.

What if a property is complete but unoccupied?

New properties, whether newly constructed or created by conversion, which are unoccupied and substantially unfurnished are not exempt from council tax, and are subject to the full charge.

The effective date of the full charge is the date when it is deemed to be complete as determined by the completion notice issued by the Council, in accordance with Section 17 of the Local Government Finance Act.

What criteria do we use to decide a completion date?

A property will be considered to have reached a stage of substantial completion when it meets the following criteria:

The basic structure is complete, for example all external walls and roof in place.

Internal walls are built (although not necessarily plastered).

Floors laid (although the screed or top coat of concrete need not have been laid).

A notice may be served specifying a final completion day of up to three months from the date of service for the remaining works for final completion of the property to be carried out. A notice could also be served specifying a completion date within three months even if the above criteria are not fully met.

Many properties will have reached an advanced level of completion where, for example, ceilings are in place, walls have been plastered and second fixing may have commenced.

In these circumstances the amount of time allowed in the notice for full completion of the property may be quite short.

In order to be considered and ready for banding, the following work does not need to have been carried out:

Internal decoration of the property.

Final fitting of sanitary ware and kitchen units

Final fitting of electrical plug points and switches

Final connection of water, gas and electricity (although services should be laid on to the site).

The criteria for determining completion for council tax purposes are substantially different to that for determining completion for Building Control therefore whether building control certificates have been issued or not is not directly relevant.

It is important to remember that a completion notice may be served up to three months in advance of the day on which the council specifies that a property is complete.

Therefore, whilst at the date when the notice is sent the property may well not be complete, the important date to bear in mind is the date that the council is specifying as the date of completion.

What if I disagree with the completion notice?

The regulations specify that if you disagree with a completion notice you should appeal within 28 days of the date of service of the notice to the Valuation Tribunal who are an independent body who make rulings on such matters.

However, you can write to the council if you wish in the first instance setting out the reasons why you disagree with the date of completion.

Once the council has received your letter, we may ask for further information or we will advise you of our decision as soon as possible, to allow you sufficient time to appeal further if you wish. A revised completion notice will be issued, if necessary.